Director, Architecture Product Design

Azori•Bellevue, WA

20h•Onsite

About The Position

The Director, Architecture Design (Architecture Design Leader) elevates design excellence across the organization, ensuring architectural designs achieve high aesthetic quality, technical feasibility, customer desirability, and business viability. The role leads the creation and stewardship of scalable design systems, including reusable modules, pattern libraries, guardrails, and standards that incorporate buyer insights, field feedback, and market expectations. The leader partners with the Architecture Product Operations Leader and cross-functional teams to create beautiful, buildable, profitable homes aligned with company strategy. The position defines and communicates architectural design vision; protects design integrity from concept through execution; and develops systems that improve consistency, efficiency, and throughput without compromising design intent. It translates customer and homeowner insights, lifestyle patterns, and market trends into design direction, while adapting designs to buyer types and neighborhood contexts. The Director ensures conceptual designs are feasible and aligned with structural, code, and site-fit constraints, working with engineering, drafting, and construction partners to address issues before handoff. The role leads a team of approximately 6–9 architects, sets expectations and workflows, develops team capabilities, and owns the employee lifecycle from hiring through offboarding. The position is full-time, based in an open-concept office, with work in the office Monday through Friday during core business hours of 8 AM–5 PM. Occasional travel to feasibility lots, job sites, municipalities, or other markets may be required.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in architecture.
Architecture licensure for Washington State.
12+ years of architectural experience in residential construction or homebuilding.
7+ years leading architecture, design, product development, and/or engineering/drafting teams.
Demonstrated proficiency in architectural design principles, structural systems, housing code compliance, construction documentation and detailing, and land planning fundamentals.
Proficiency with architectural software, including AutoCAD, Revit, and BIM tools.
Proven experience influencing executives and leading cross-functional initiatives.
Strong understanding of cost drivers and value-engineering techniques.
Strong understanding of architectural processes, structural logic, building codes, and construction feasibility.
Ability to balance feasibility, desirability, and viability in design decisions.
Ability to communicate technical and non-technical information clearly to technical and non-technical partners.
Strong communication and storytelling skills, including the ability to articulate design intent clearly and persuasively.
Ability to work in the office Monday–Friday during core business hours of 8 AM–5 PM.
Ability to occasionally walk lots and/or job sites.
Frequent daily computer use, including keyboard functions and visual acuity at 20 inches or fewer.
Ability to lift up to 10 lbs occasionally, with or without accommodation.
Valid Washington State driver’s license and vehicle insurance; local travel requires use of a personal vehicle.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree in architecture.
Licensure in Arizona.
A strong architectural design portfolio demonstrating aesthetic judgment, technical capabilities, and systems thinking.
Experience developing reusable design assets, standards, or scalable pattern libraries.
Proficiency with Microsoft products including Outlook, Excel, Word, PowerPoint, and Copilot and/or other AI tools.
Curiosity, continuous learning, agility, adaptability, and emphasis on developing team capabilities.
Coaching, active listening, motivating and empowering others, and effective delegation skills.
Empathy, care for employees, feedback-seeking and feedback-giving, self-awareness, and trust-building.
Vision, change-management ability, strategic alignment, innovation, big-picture thinking, and openness to emerging technology.
Welcoming diverse viewpoints, market awareness, systems thinking, willingness to challenge the status quo, collaboration, and win-win problem-solving.
Initiative, alignment of personal and company goals, follow-through, and integrity.
Leadership grounded in clarity, accountability, humility, and collaboration.

Responsibilities

Define and communicate a compelling architectural design vision that elevates beauty, clarity, usability, and customer appeal.
Ensure designs balance aesthetics, technical feasibility, and lifestyle relevance for luxury buyers.
Protect design integrity throughout project phases, from early concept to execution.
Drive consistency, clarity, and innovation across design outputs.
Develop and maintain scalable design systems, including reusable modules, pattern libraries, and layout frameworks.
Codify principles, rules, and standards to reduce rework, accelerate throughput, and improve consistency.
Ensure system assets translate clearly into templates and documentation, and improve efficiency while preserving design intent and quality.
Translate customer insights, homeowner feedback, and luxury-buyer lifestyle patterns into design direction.
Collaborate with Sales, CX, and Home Experience teams to identify design opportunities and resolve friction points.
Ensure designs resonate with multiple luxury buyer types and adapt appropriately to neighborhood contexts.
Apply market and real estate trends to shape long-term design evolution.
Ensure conceptual designs are technically feasible, buildable, and aligned with structural, code, and site-fit constraints.
Work with engineering, drafting, and construction partners to resolve issues before handoff.
Identify simplification and cost-effective design opportunities without compromising experience quality.
Integrate feasibility, desirability, and viability into early-stage decisions.
Partner with Architecture Operations, Construction, Interior Design, Land, Sales, and CX teams to align design goals.
Represent design intent in design reviews, cross-functional decisions, and executive discussions.
Align design systems with operational constraints and customer expectations; resolve design conflicts and explain key design choices.
Lead and coach a team of approximately 6–9 architects in creative and technical development.
Lead structured critiques that elevate clarity, craft, and systems thinking.
Establish expectations, accountability structures, workflows, and development pathways.
Cultivate a culture of humility, collaboration, accuracy, systems thinking, and continuous improvement.
Own the team's employee lifecycle, including hiring, onboarding, development, performance management, and offboarding.
Identify and help recruit design talent aligned with organizational needs.
Perform other related duties as necessary or assigned.
Occasionally walk lots for feasibility work and/or visit job sites.
Travel occasionally to feasibility lots, job sites, municipalities, and/or other markets as required.

Benefits

100% covered employee premiums for medical and dental self-coverage.
100% employer-paid life insurance.
100% employer-paid long-term disability insurance.
Paid medical and family leave.
Critical illness insurance.
401(k) with generous company match, no vesting schedule, and access to professional financial advisors.
Lifestyle reimbursement account.
20 days of PTO and 9 holidays.
New iPhone for personal and business use.
Free onsite parking.
Company-paid events.
Complimentary snacks and beverages.
Discretionary performance bonus.